Saccoman and Nordqvist Named WCHA Players of the Month

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. –Collin Saccomanand Jacob Nordqvisthave been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association Players of the Month for November, as announced by conference officials on Wednesday.

Saccoman (6-3--9), a junior defenseman from Stillwater, Minnesota who is majoring in Criminal Justice, earned WCHA Defenseman of the Month honors. Saccoman led the WCHA and tied for first in the nation among defensemen in goals scored (5) during the month. His seven points on the month tied with teammate Lukas Kaelble (1-8--9) (trailing Nordqvist (2-9--11) for the second-most points by a WCHA defenseman. In addition, he also tied for the most power-play goals among WCHA blueliners with two.

Saccoman had a streak of four consecutive games with a goal that started in the second game with then-No. 12 Michigan on Nov. 3 and culminated with a goal at then-No. 10 Bowling Green on Nov. 17. He also had a six-game point streak (5-1--6) that started with the second Michigan game and culminated with a goal against Northern Michigan on Nov. 23.

Nordqvist, a freshman from Gothenburg, Sweden who is a general studies major, was named the WCHA Rookie of the Month. He led WCHA freshmen in points (8), while tying for first in assists (6) and adding two goals in November. He also led all WCHA freshmen in plus/minus with a +6 rating and he tied for first in game-winning goals (1). In addition, he led all freshman defensemen in the nation in points and tied for first in assists and game-winning goals.

Nordqvist scored the game-winning goal in the Lakers' 5-2 win over then-No.12 Michigan on Nov. 2. He then matched his career high in points (2) and assists (2) against Michigan on Nov. 3, and he garnered a +4 rating in the series. On the month, he tallied points in seven of the Lakers' nine games played. In addition, Nordqvist was named the WCHA Rookie of the Week for the week of Nov. 2-3 after his performance in the series against Michigan.

The last Laker to receive a WCHA monthly honor was junior Max Humitz, who was named WCHA Rookie of the Month for January of 2017.

LSSU faces Alaska in a two-game WCHA series on Friday and Saturday at Carlson Center in Fairbanks, Alaska. Puck drop is scheduled for 11:07 p.m. EST on both days.

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